Celebrating
200 Years

The
Bicentennial of the Louisiana Supreme Court

1813-2013

Louisiana Supreme Court Justices

1813-Present

Frank W. Summers (1914-1993)

Associate Justice, Supreme Court of Louisiana, December 12, 1960, to December 31, 1978

Chief Justice, January 1, 1979, to February 29, 1980

Born September 5, 1914, in Abbeville, Louisiana • Educated in Abbeville public schools • Earned B.A. at Southwestern Louisiana Institute in 1936 • Received LL.B. from Tulane Law School in 1938 • Married Beverly Miller in 1940 and had six children • Established law practice in Abbeville, interrupted by World War II • Commanded an amphibious vessel in the Pacific • Discharged with the rank of lieutenant commander November 1945 • Resumed law practice until appointment as judge of the Fifteenth Judicial District for Acadia, Lafayette, and Vermilion parishes, serving 1952 to 1954 • Returned to practice until election to Supreme Court in October 1960 • Became chief justice January 1, 1979 • Served during rapid expansion of caseloads at all levels of the judiciary • Urged restructuring judicial system to transfer jurisdiction for criminal appeals from Supreme Court to Courts of Appeal • Retired after fourteen months as chief on February 29, 1980, to devote energy to family and their large farm and cattle ranch in Vermilion Parish • Remained active in professional, civic, and veterans' organizations • Died January 26, 1993, in Abbeville •